Slave to Sensation: Psy-Changeling Series, Book 1

Nalini Singh dives into a world torn apart by a powerful race with phenomenal powers of the mind - and none of the heart. Born a Psy, Sascha Duncan must hide the emotions that mark her as flawed. But a passionate Changeling will tempt her to reveal everything - and risk her very soul.

I had never before heard of this series before listening to the audiobook and I have to say that this is quite the pleasant surprise. I love fantasy books and I have recently started to enjoy romance books, but I never before imagined the two genres could be combined. Nalini Singh has done a fantastic job of mixing two together. I picked this book mainly for the fantasy appeal, but as I began listening to it, seeing the world that Sasha and Lucas lived, I definitely could tell that I was going to enjoy this. The plot was not a cliche at all and the characters, all of them, were very well developed. The only bad that I would have to say about the book is the chapters seemed to stop in odd places and it didn't help that the narrator did not pause long enough to allow the listener to register that a new chapter was taking place. If the pause was a little longer, the odd spots for new chapters wouldn't seem as odd. Besides that little annoyance, the book is wonderful and I will one of the fan girls that I will be on the look out for other books from this series.

On a family visit to the city, Mom is right behind her husband when the train pulls out of Seoul Station without her, and she is lost, possibly forever. As her children argue over how to find her, they each recall their lives with her. Have they lived up to her expectations? Was she happy? Through the piercing voices of daughter, son, and husband, and through Mom’s own words in the novel’s shattering conclusion, we learn what happened that day, and explore an even deeper mystery—of motherhood itself.

I really enjoyed this book, both the story and the performances. I felt transplanted in Korea and the character development was wonderful, for each major character had his/her distinct personality and quirks, even how they developed over time: childhood to adulthood. You got to see "Mom" in their own view and the differences between also added to the distinctions between the characters. Hearing Mom's own voice at the end of the book was a great ending, though I was still a little confused as to what exactly happened to her.

The second person use in the book was not odd as some may believe. It adds to the book's charm and uniqueness. It definitely would not be the same book if it had used third person. The narrators did an amazing job with the second person and made it comfortable. Because of this, I am interested in more novels that use the second person.

It makes you think about your own relationship with the important people, particularly women, in your life. Overall, I am very happy that I found this book and I highly recommend it.

Caitlin Decter is young, pretty, feisty, a genius at math - and blind. Still, she can surf the net with the best of them, following its complex paths clearly in her mind. But Caitlin's brain long ago co-opted her primary visual cortex to help her navigate online. So when she receives an implant to restore her sight, instead of seeing reality, the landscape of the World Wide Web explodes into her consciousness, spreading out all around her in a riot of colors and shapes.

I think that this is a great beginning to a series. It sets up the plots that will be explored more within the next two books. However, at times, it seemed strange to have three different plots going on at the same time without them connecting until the very end. Thankfully, it was not hard to keep up with what is going on the various plots since they did not seem to jump around often.

The performers were great and really made the book come alive. I especially loved Caitlin's voice because she sounded like exactly how I would imagine an intelligent American teenager would sound.

Overall, the book was great, but certainly could not stand on its own. It's a wonderful beginning to a series and I can't wait to read Watch and Wonder.

At the end of Shadow of the Giant, Bean flees to the stars with three of his children--the three who share the engineered genes that gave him both hyper-intelligence and a short, cruel physical life. The time dilation granted by the speed of their travel gives Earth’s scientists generations to seek a cure, to no avail. In time, they are forgotten - a fading ansible signal speaking of events lost to Earth’s history. But the Delphikis are about to make a discovery that will let them save themselves, and perhaps all of humanity in days to come.

I have loved all the Ender and Shadow series book so far. I'm reading (listening) to them in chronological order and I have thoroughly enjoying them. When I came up to this story, I was very excited to see what happened to Bean and his three children after they entered the spaceship. I think that this story allowed us to see exactly that. We got to meet his children, all grown up and brilliant and immature. The performance by all the readers is amazing and had me engulfed in the story.

As the story progressed, I loved every minute of it: the relationship between Bean and his children, the relationships between each of the children, the power struggle between the two boys, and the exploration of the ship. When the end neared, I could not sense it, which I am usually able to do. Then it ended and I was left hanging, waiting for the second half of the book to begin.

As Card explained in the author's note, this was an experiment of a half-novel to see if there was a market for such a length. Honestly, I think that this was not long enough to stand on its own as a book, especially when one compares it to the lengths of his other Ender and Shadow novels. I would declare this experiment a failure. It was too short. This could have worked if this was the first book in a series or a stand-alone book. However, to introduce a half-novel in the middle of a series of full length novels was not the smartest of ideas.

Mindscan

Jake Sullivan has cheated death: he's discarded his doomed biological body and copied his consciousness into an android form. The new Jake soon finds love, something that eluded him when he was encased in flesh: he falls for the android version of Karen, a woman rediscovering all the joys of life now that she too is no longer constrained by a worn-out body. Karen's son sues her, claiming that by uploading into an immortal body, she has done him out of his inheritance.

This is my first book of Robert J. Sawyer and while the publisher's summary and the first couple of chapters were really caught my attention, I felt that as the book went on, I kept waiting for something more to happen and that never seemed to be the case. The end was extremely disappointing and left me with a "Eh..." sort of feeling. I don't feel that I wasted my time in listening to the book for it had some good parts throughout the book. However, I feel that this was a book more on philosophy than the characters and their story. I also did not enjoy the switching back and forth between the earth Jake and the moon Jake without much of a notice. It was sudden and took me a minute to understand that we had switched.

The narrator was decent, though he seemed robotic at times when reading the narration. Maybe that was to add to the feel of the book, but I did not like it and it distracted me from what was going on in the book.

Overall, it was an okay book, and the narration was okay. It would only recommend it if you really like philosophy more so than a story.

The Count of Monte Cristo

On the eve of his marriage to the beautiful Mercedes, having that very day been made captain of his ship, the young sailor Edmond Dantès is arrested on a charge of treason, trumped up by jealous rivals. Incarcerated for many lonely years in the isolated and terrifying Chateau d'If near Marseille, he meticulously plans his brilliant escape and extraordinary revenge.

I remember reading the abridged version of The Count of Monte Cristo when I was in high school and back then I liked the book but since some important scenes where missing from the abridged version, I could not fully enjoy all that this book offers. However, now having listened to this book in its entirety, I can say that it is so much better than I remembered from high school.

I love revenge plots in the first place and the precision that The Count executes with each of his revenges is one of the reasons why this book is a classic. The sarcastic humor is another and there are certainly plenty more.

The narrator of the book was wonderful! I loved how Homewood was able to pronounce the European names of places and people correctly, especially the French ones. Each character had a distinct voice and it brought this old tale to life. I really enjoyed all 52 hours and 45 minutes of The Count of Monte Cristo.

The Prince of Tides

Spanning 40 years, this is the story of turbulent Tom Wingo, his gifted and troubled twin sister Savannah, and their struggle to triumph over the dark and tragic legacy of the extraordinary family into which they were born.

I picked this book up just because it sounded interesting. I am so happy that I done! I have never read/listened to one of Pat Conroy's books before and I do believe this was a good introduction for me. The different angles that this book presents are wonderfully done and surprisingly, very easy to follow. I thoroughly enjoyed the flashbacks into Tom and his family's past, learning about how his life impacted his personality, decisions, and life in general. I also enjoyed who Pat introduced characters and while they may or may not have played a vital part of the story, they did not sudden disappear without some sort of explanation as to their outcome.

Frank Muller did an amazing job with the voices and did just as Conroy said he would do: bring this book to life. Each character had a distinctive voice so there was no getting confused as to who was speaking. The females sounded like proper southern woman or even a stern New Yorker. A very excellent job Muller did and I am sadden by the lost of this wonderful talent.

Overall this is one of the best audiobooks I have listened to. I highly recommend it.

The Identity Man: A Novel

John Shannon is on the run, facing life in prison or death by lethal injection. Then, a bizarre text message draws him to a meeting in the dark of night. A foreigner who calls himself the Identity Man offers Shannon an incredible chance to start again: a new face, a new home, a new beginning. Soon Shannon is living a life he never dreamed possible. In a ruined city that is trying to rebuild, he finds work as a carpenter and a wood carver. He falls in love. But then all hell breaks loose....

I was not for sure what to expect when I picked up The Identity Man. This is my first Andrew Klavan novel. However, in the end, I'm glad that I finished it. It was a very well done thriller. One thing I liked about the layout of the book is the fact that even though it was told in third person, the narrator knew what was going on in everyone's head and allowed the listener to gain access. The narrator was not some random ghost that was just reciting some facts, but actually telling a story filled with the emotions and thoughts of the characters. The pace of the book was a nice touch as well, filled with plenty of action to keep the listener entertained, but still did not leave out the story aspect. It also did not drag in the slow parts, like when Shannon was adjusting into his new life. The book kept the appropriate speed for the different types of scenes. It also ended nicely, cleaning up every loose end.

As for the narrator, I was a little worried that the author was going to be doing the reading. I figured that it would not be that good as some of the more professional narrators. I was completely surprised when I actually started to listen to the book. Klavan is an excellent narrator. I loved how he was able to so many different types of voices and how easy it was to tell each character apart. His female voices weren't that bad either, though when he voiced the little boy Michael, it was a bit overdone at times. Besides that little nick-pick, I found Klavan wonderful to listen to.

Overall, this was a book great story with strong narration, probably one of the strongest I have heard in a while. I really enjoyed this book and I might have to get some more of Klavan's books in the future, especially if his specialty is thrillers.

Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet behind the rubble of an old barbershop where she lives with her grandfather, she thinks about what is lost. There are those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked. Pures. They are tucked safely inside the Dome that protects their healthy, superior bodies. Yet Partridge, whose father is one of the most influential men in the Dome, feels isolated and lonely. Different. He thinks about loss - maybe just because his family is broken. When Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again.

When I picked out Pure as my next book to read, I figured that it would be the same old "End of the World" concept that usually gets overplayed quite a bit. Luckily, the postapocalyptic world that is created by Baggott is unlike anything I have read or listened to before. I loved how the scenery was described by Pressia, the ash swirling about her head. I also enjoyed the interactions between all the main characters and how each them got their own chapters. And despite the horrible world that they lived in, the reader could see that they were still kids at heart even if their childhood was robbed from them.

All of the narrators did a wonderful job when reading their own character's voice. However, some of the were not able to handle the opposite sex's voices very well and it was a bit distracting for the reader. For example, the voice of Bradwell (a boy) sounds completely different from when Pressia (a girl) is telling the story from when Partridge (a boy). When Pressia is telling the story, Bradwell sounds somewhat whimpy than from when Patridge tells the story, where he sounds gruff and rugged. It would have been better if the same person could do the voice throughout the book, no matter who is telling the story at the moment.

I like the book overall, all the weirdness and how nearly everyone was fused with something or someone. I wait impatiently for the next book in the series.

Endymion

Here, Simmons returns to this richly imagined world of technological achievement, excitement, wonder and fear. Endymion is a story about love and memory, triumph and terror - an instant candidate for the field's highest honors.

Sadly when I picked this book, I did not know that it was part of a series, so I listened to Endymion thinking that it was a stand alone book. However, I felt that it was a very good book in its own right. I love the beginning! It just drew me in and made what to know more about Raul and his history. As other characters were introduced into the story, I liked how each had a little background history that was exploded throughout the book. It had the right amount of action in the book. There was never really a slow part for me. The narration was excellent as well, men sounding like men and little girls sounding like little girls. Each character had their own distinct voice so it was easy to tell who was speaking/thinking at the moment.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and now that I know there is a series, I will definitely be listening to the rest of the books.

The Lincoln Lawyer

Haller is a Lincoln Lawyer, a criminal defense pro who operates out of the backseat of his Lincoln Town Car, to defend clients at the bottom of the legal food chain. It's no wonder that he is despised by cops, prosecutors, and even some of his own clients. But an investigator is murdered for getting too close to the truth and Haller quickly discovers that his search for innocence has taken him face to face with a kind of evil as pure as a flame.

I have been a long time fan of Connelly, reading a numerous amount of his books. I had also read one other Mickey Haller book as well, which I enjoyed. I figured that I should read this one as well and I am happy that I did. I flew by this book, unable to stop listening to it. I really loved how real Haller was and how you could see how he struggled with his inner demons. The narration is wonderful and makes for a easy listen. If you like courtroom drama, then this is a good book for you.

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